The 1 on 1 principle

Do something good and talk about it. Many companies act according to this motto and are committed to social projects. In technical terms this is referred to as Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). But now the Berlin start-up company “Share” is even going one step further. The masterminds behind this are not only paying lip service but have developed not one but three products whose proceeds benefit disadvantaged persons. Since 12 March 2018 the “Share” Alpenwasser water, nut bar and hand soap have been available not only at the webshop but also at REWE and dm retail stores.

Underlying the product development is the fact that on a global scale only 3 in 10 people – totalling some 2.1 billion – have access to clean drinking water at home. In contrast to this the western world is “inundated” with an excess supply of different water brands. Shoppers are spoilt for choice with a host of products ranging from volcano water from France to Hawaiian coconut water – whatever their preference. “Share”, however, aims to make a difference rather than being just another brand of water. Every purchase of the “Alpenwasser” is said to provide one person in a third-world region with access to flowing water. To this end the start-up company cooperates with the relief organisation “Aktion gegen Hunger”, which has wells built, to name but one project. Those buying a nut bar sponsor a meal for someone in need. Alongside the relief organisation “Aktion gegen Hunger” it is the Berlin food bank “Berliner Tafel e.V.” that provides support here. With one “Share” hand soap one bar of soap is sponsored at the same time.  

To ensure transparency each packaging unit is provided with a QR code that discloses the origin of the product and the recipient of the donation. At present, the donations go to organisations in Germany, Bangladesh, Liberia, Cambodia, Senegal and Ethiopia. 

Using packaging surfaces as communication tools not only makes a lot of sense for cost reasons but also from a marketing perspective. When product and advertising messages come together to form a harmonious whole consumer decisions to buy are positively influenced. The inventors of the Hamburg cosmetics brand “Stop the Water while using me!” were well aware of this. Their message features on all of their products and is meant to encourage consumers to turn off the tap when using soap, shower gel or shampoo.  

To raise even more awareness about the “Share” campaign the creative agency “Heimat” has launched further promotion measures. In addition to advertising on the products themselves customary advertising channels such as TV, billboarding, social media and influencers are now also being leveraged. Furthermore, actors Karoline Herfurth and Kostja Ullmann are supporting the campaign. Thanks to the two major retail partners REWE and dm the “Share” products will also be stocked by some 8,000 outlets across Germany. In addition to this, German drugstore dm has launched its click donation campaign #klickspender. With one click each user can select an icon to make the world a better place. In return dm will make an additional donation. The campaign will continue until 15,000 icons have been collected each for water, hygiene and meals.